City of Love Caper
by Persephatta
Summary: Gray just wants a day out with his girlfriend in the most romantic city in the world. Carmen wants to take V.I.L.E. down. And El Topo and La Chevre just want to be together. Pairings: Carmen/Gray (major), La Chevre/El Topo (minor). Fluff, Established Relationship


**Disclaimer: I do not own Carmen Sandiego, this is purely a work of fanfiction**

**This fic is set in the near future where Red Crackle is already canon.**

* * *

The Louvre, located in Paris, France, was the largest art museum in the world, with more than 35,000 pieces in its collection, spanning from ancient civilisations – such as the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans – to the 19th century. It was home to a vast number of celebrated works, including the '_Venus de Milo_', Eugène Delacroix's '_Liberty Leading the People_', the Crown of Louis XV, and most famous of all, Leonardo da Vinci's '_Mona Lisa_'.

The iconic painting was railed off to keep the crowd at bay, sealed behind bulletproof glass and protected by a squad of guards. It had been stolen once before in 1911, though later recovered, and was the perfect target for V.I.L.E.'s misdeeds. At least, that's what Player's intel had suggested, and so here they were in Paris, blending in with the tourists and scoping out the historic monument for any sign of the criminal organisation. All in all, it was a standard reconnaissance mission but Carmen couldn't shake the feeling that something was off and not in the typical V.I.L.E. fashion. The voice in her ear had gone unusually quiet and it set her on edge. She couldn't truly appreciate the culture around her when she felt as if she were holding her breath. Her partner – _in more ways than one_ – didn't seem to share her concerns.

"Hey, this stuff is awesome! You need to come check this out it's…" Gray trailed off, noticing her expression. "What's wrong?"

"Player hasn't checked in for a long-time and I can't get through to him."

The news didn't appear to faze the Aussie. "He's probably at school. It's an important year for him, academically."

"Still, it's not normal for him to disappear without signing off first." Carmen's instincts told her there was more to this than appeared and they had never steered her wrong before. There was something suspicious about this whole situation. "Maybe I should check in with the others…"

"Ack, don't do that," Gray blurted, far too quickly.

Carmen raised an eyebrow. Speaking of suspicious. "Gray, is there something you're not telling me?"

"Ah- I just meant- Zack's sick… we shouldn't disturb him..."

That was true. It was originally supposed to be the four of them together in Paris but Zack had suddenly come down with the flu and, in a gracious show of sibling affection, Ivy had opted to remain and look after her poor baby brother. Carmen had thought this a tad unnecessary given Shadowsan was also staying behind – rationalising that a middle-aged man accompanying a group of twenty-year-olds would look suspicious – but she supposed his bedside manner was not the best. Carmen didn't mind having Gray as her only backup, but it was odd for most of her team to duck out like that and now with their hacker missing… something wasn't right.

"Ivy or Shadowsan will be around to pick-up," Carmen countered and watched as Gray scrambled for a response.

"Uh… well… if you think it's um necessary…"

Carmen scrutinised him. It wasn't like Gray to stammer; hard to believe he had been a top V.I.L.E. operative. But he had been, _once_.

Carmen wouldn't be with Gray if she didn't trust him to have her back (and she certainly wouldn't have let him into her bed if she believed there was any chance of betrayal). They had already faced Dr Bellum's mind-control scheme; Gray was clear of all V.I.L.E.'s influences, he would never help them again. He was on her side, she had no doubt of that, but he was hiding something from her, something they had promised never to do to each other. When their whole lives were a secret, there could be none between them. Which was why she didn't understand what he could be keeping from her now.

"Gray…" She stilled, spotting something over his shoulder. "V.I.L.E. is here."

"_What?_"

She didn't respond, already weaving through the crowd towards her target. The throng of tourists closed in around her, obstructing her view; there was no easy way to push through the crowd without drawing attention too herself and when she finally reached the intended spot her quarry was gone. She looked around frantically but couldn't see him.

"What is it?" Gray asked, catching up to her.

"El Topo, he's here, I saw him."

"No, that's impossible."

"Why impossible? We knew V.I.L.E. would be here." That was the whole point of the mission; they needed to find El Topo and figure out what V.I.L.E.'s angle was. "Let's split up. You take the upper levels, I'll continue on this floor and work my way down."

"Wait- Carmen- " Gray spluttered but she was off, on the hunt.

They needed to act quickly otherwise they would lose their only lead so far. Shadowsan would caution her against rushing in, but Gray's behaviour and Player's radio silence had unnerved her. She needed to know more, needed to get back in-control. Unfortunately, it didn't look like her plan was going to work out. She scoured the entire lower levels of the Louvre without catching another glimpse of El Topo or V.I.L.E.

She radioed Gray but his luck was no better.

"_No one's here, Carm… maybe you just saw someone who looked like El Topo…_"

"I know it was him," Carmen huffed. She didn't understand why he was being so sceptical; they were here looking for proof of V.I.L.E and they'd found it. "Rendezvous outside the Pyramid."

"_It's a date._"

Carmen couldn't help but smile at this, feeling a little more at ease. She headed in the direction of the Pyramid, intent on meeting Gray. But first… she took out her phone, dialling the base.

"_Hey Carm!_"

"Zack? You sound… chipper." Carmen frowned.

"_Ah- uh I- I'm feeling much better… yeah…_"

She could hear Ivy in the background. "_Is that Carmen? You idiot. Give me the phone." _

"_No, I got this." _

"_You're gonna blow the whole surprise, dummy." _

"_Stop shoving!"_

"_Give me the phone!"_

The sound of a struggle could be heard through the speaker and Carmen found herself amused by the sibling's antics. Zack definitely seemed to have recovered from his earlier illness. Although the small snatches of conversation she was picking up on were… _interesting_…

There was a resounding thump and Carmen winced. It sounded like the Boston duo was putting Shadowsan's training to good use.

"_Hey Carm_," Ivy chirped, victorious. She could make out the faint sound of Zack groaning. "_How's Paris?_"

"So far… unsuccessful."

"_Wha- what do ya mean?_"

"We haven't uncovered any leads on V.I.L.E., I caught a glimpse of El Topo but he got away before we could pursue."

"_El Topo? What? That ain't right. Are you sure it was him?" _

Carmen frowned. "Of course I'm sure. What do you mean by _not right_?"

"_Uh- I um- uuhh…" _

"_Look who's the dummy now," _she heard Zack hiss.

There was the muffled sound of the phone being passed over and then Shadowsan was speaking, "_Carmen, where is Graham?_"

"We split up to cover more ground; I'm on my way to meet him now."

"_Good. You must stay together. It would be all too easy for V.I.L.E. to attack you whilst you were separated._"

Carmen's heart clenched and she quickened her pace. "Understood. Shadowsan… have you heard from Player at all, he's gone dark our side."

"_Hmmm… no need to fear, our young hacker contacted the base not too long ago. All is well, you needn't concern yourself with anything beyond Paris for the time being."_

Carmen took a deep breath, letting his words alleviate her fears, and exhaled. "Thank you, Shadowsan."

"_Enjoy your trip, Carmen,_" he said before hanging up.

Carmen put her phone away and carried on to the Pyramid. She arrived before Gray and as the minutes passed without show her agitation returned, Shadowsan's words playing on loop in her head. What if V.I.L.E. had ambushed him? What if he was hurt? Captured? Memory erased? She couldn't lose Gray, not again.

She activated her earpiece. "Gray, status update?"

"Turn around."

Her heart stuttered at the sound of his voice. He was alright. She turned and there he was, holding a single red rose.

"One red beauty for my red beauty," he said, sporting a charming smile.

Carmen found it difficult to roll her eyes at the cheesy line when she was so moved by the gesture. She accepted the flower, smiling softly. "Where did you get this?"

"It's Paris, there are stalls everywhere."

"It's lovely, thank you." She pecked his cheek.

Gray beamed, linking his hand with hers. "So how about we get some lunch?"

"Good idea, we can re-strategize on what to do about V.I.L.E."

"Uh… right… um…"

There it was again, that hesitation. Carmen frowned, fixing him with a look. "Seriously, Gray, what is going on? You're acting strange. Tell me the truth, please."

Gray ran a hand through his hair, causing it to stick-up even more than usual. "I was saving the surprise for later…"

"_Graham_."

Gray winced. "Ack, you're Graham-ing me. We never meant any harm, honestly. The truth is… V.I.L.E. isn't here, they never were. We faked the mission so that we – _you and I _– could come to Paris. It was supposed to be a surprise."

Carmen reeled back, snatching her hand from his. She struggled to process the bomb he had just dropped but one word stood out.

"_We?_"

Gray nodded, having the decency to look ashamed. "The team and I… we planned it together."

Carmen couldn't believe this; her friends had all conspired against her. "The whole mission was a set-up…? Why? Why Paris?"

"We thought you could use a break, you've been pushing yourself a lot lately." He offered a small lopsided smile. "Paris is the City of Love; it was supposed to be romantic."

Carmen blinked. "Romantic?"

"Happy one year anniversary, Carmen."

She stared, speechless, as Gray did jazz-hands.

"Surprise."

-x-

The café they were sat in had a TV and appeared to be playing a children's cartoon. Graham wasn't too sure on the plot, since it was in French, but the black cat guy appeared to be in love with the girl in the red and black-spotted jumpsuit, only she kept dismissing his attempts to woo her, swinging away to save the day instead. He could sympathise, his own scarlet sweetheart was ignoring him in favour of her communicator.

"I cannot believe you were all in on this. Zack, did you even have the flu?"

"_Ah… *__**cough**__*… sorry, Carm… *__**cough cough**__*… I-I- I ain't feeling so good, ahem… *__**cough cough* **__I- ah- can't talk…_"

"_Nice performance, Shakespeare,_" Ivy scoffed before her voice softened, "_Carm, we only wanted to give you and Gray some alone time... We thought it'd be sweet, a chance to relax… y'know to distract from everything that's happened lately."_

Graham kept his gaze focused on the TV, feeling his cheeks warm. He thought it best he stayed out of this conversation.

"Exactly, a _distraction_," Carmen retorted. "V.I.L.E. may not be here, but they're up to something somewhere."

"_Don't sweat it, Red,_" Player intervened. The others had gotten the hacker on the line as soon as it became clear that the jig was up. "_I'm keeping an eye on things, like always. If any trouble arises then we can handle it. You should enjoy the break, when did you last take time for yourself?" _

It had been a few months at least. Graham's concerns had been growing for a while. Carmen had been pushing herself harder and harder, ever since things went down with her mum. She had always been focused on the mission, but with the way she was going, she would burn herself out.

The others had felt the same and they decided an intervention was necessary. Ivy had been the one of propose the vacation, Zack had gotten excited until Ivy insisted it be a romantic getaway for the resident couple. Graham had been surprised that Ivy was effectively wingmanning him when she'd been so hostile towards him in the beginning (although, they were good friends now) but he wasn't going to say no to some alone time with Carmen. If you didn't count the stakeouts (which he didn't) the last time they had been on anything close to a proper date was almost five months ago in Prague when they'd managed exactly two hours and 11 minutes before A.C.M.E. had tried to ambush them. Player had suggested Paris (who knew he was such a romantic?) and Graham shyly admitted their one year anniversary was coming up in five weeks; thus, Operation Red Crackle (Zack's contribution) was a go.

Shadowsan hadn't been a part of the original plan but it was a miracle they managed to keep their scheming a secret from Carmen; it was hardly surprising when the veteran V.I.L.E. operative confronted them. What was surprising was his approval of their plot. Like Ivy, Shadowsan had been distrustful of Graham's joining the team and downright disapproving when his relationship with Carmen began to heat-up (in fact, other than Carmen, Zack had been the only one who genuinely welcomed Graham into the fold and was his best mate as a result), but it seemed his old mentor was also concerned for Carmen and agreed their deceit was necessary.

Player had presented the false intel to the team revealing the Louvre to be V.I.L.E.'s next target. Ivy had Zack play sick so she had an excuse to stay home and Graham had organised a candlelit dinner where he'd surprise Carmen with the truth. He should have known she'd figure it out long before then.

"I'm fine," Carmen grit out even though they all knew she wasn't. "And you shouldn't have gone behind my back."

"Wouldn't have been much of a surprise if it weren't a secret," Graham added, attempting some light humour. The look Carmen shot him made him shut his mouth.

"_Carmen,_" that was Shadowsan. _"You have become unfocused, more reckless in your decisions. You are exhausting yourself and cannot hope to bring down an organisation like V.I.L.E. without rest. I understand what happened with your mother was… difficult…"_

Carmen sucked in a breath at the mention of her mother and Graham reached out a hand, settling it over her own. She didn't pull back, at least, but wouldn't meet his gaze.

"_Nonetheless, you cannot continue to push yourself like this. You need time to rest and recover. I thought this trip would be good for you, not only as an opportunity to step back and gain some perspective, but also a chance to do something for yourself without V.I.L.E. interfering. You have dedicated yourself to fighting the shadows that hang over this world; it is a noble pursuit but do not let it stop you from enjoying what life has to offer. V.I.L.E. already robbed you of your past, do not let them take your future too. You deserve to be happy and I believe Graham makes you so… relish what time you have together… do not repeat my mistakes."_

Graham was touched. He'd have to find some way to express his gratitude even though he knew the old thief would dismiss him.

Carmen exhaled and Graham observed her reaction to her mentor's words; her eyes glistened even as she kept her voice steady. "Thank you, Shadowsan… you may be right."

"_Whoa, Shadowsan, that was some awesome wise old ninja wisdom right there!" _Zack exclaimed.

Shadowsan huffed, _"I am not a ninja."_

Carmen cracked a small smile at this, which Graham took to be a good sign.

"_Hey Red, sorry for the deceit but we really did have your best interests at heart," _Player apologised.

"_Yeah, Carm," _Ivy chimed in, _"You forgive us, right?" _

Carmen sighed but she was still smiling. "Don't make a habit of it, but yes, I forgive you."

Graham wasn't sure if he was included in that; he hoped so. She hadn't taken her hand back yet.

"We'll speak some more later," Carmen went on and the voices chorused on the other end.

"_Enjoy yourselves."_

"_Bring back gifts!"_

"_Zack!"_

"_What! They got to go to Paris while I had to play sick. I could be eating French bread right, ooh and French toast, and French fries- "_

"_French fries are just fries, moron." _

"_Then why do they have _French _in the name?"_

"_Fries are thought to have originated in France or possibly Belgium; it's a much disputed matter. Although, there is evidence that fries date back to early Latin America, where potatoes originated." _

"_Thanks, Boy Google." _

"_Hey, where'd Shadowsan go?" _

Graham decided this was their cue to leave. "Bye guys, thanks for all your help. We'll send a postcard."

He cut the connection and looked over at Carmen. She stared back, her expression was difficult to read.

"So… " He began, fingers running over her hand, nervously.

Carmen pulled her hand back, crossing her arms. "You lied to me."

Graham winced, body deflating. "...we thought it'd be a nice surprise, we never meant any harm."

Carmen heaved a sign, the cold melting from her face. "I know… I appreciate what you were trying to do but… after everything that's happened, I could have done without another _surprise_…"

"Yeah, it wasn't fair of us to spring this on you but we didn't think you'd agree if we told you the truth and you needed a break. We were worried."

"You're probably right… I suppose I have been rather _tense_ lately," she admitted with some reluctance, stretching out her arms and slumping over the table. "Ugh… sorry I ruined the surprised."

"Hey, hey, it's okay…" Graham patted her shoulder and offered, tentatively, "...would you… would you rather we go back? Home, I mean?"

Carmen was quiet for a moment, studying her reflection in the metallic table-top.

"No…" she said slowly, straightening up and meeting his gaze. "We're already here; might as well enjoy it."

Excitement buzzed inside of him, but he kept it in check, needing to be sure Carmen felt the same.

"And this is definitely what you want?"

Carmen nodded, smiling as she took his hand in hers. "Yes, Gray, this is what I want… _you _are what I want… it'd be nice to have some real alone time."

Graham's heartbeat quickened, grin spreading across his face. "Great! Yeah! I mean... yeah… did you want to go back to the Louvre, we left pretty quick?"

"No, it might look suspicious… I suppose that can't have been El Topo I saw."

"We made up all that stuff about V.I.L.E., there's no way any of their operatives are really here."

What were the odds of that happening?

"Gray?"

"Hm?" He looked back to Carmen, only to see that she'd moved and was now right beside him.

She pressed her lips to his, pulling away before he could react and flashing that saucy smile of hers. "Happy anniversary."

Gray grinned goofily, all thoughts of V.I.L.E. leaving his head.

"You are a cheeky one," he chuckled and pulled her in for a real kiss.

-x-

Carmen gazed across the Paris skyline, the sun just starting to dip below the horizon, the sky a canvas of amber and rose. The world was always beautiful, no matter where you went.

"Gorgeous," Gray murmured beside her. "And the view's not bad either."

Carmen turned her smile on him, indulging him with a kiss. They were not the only couple on the famous monument getting swept up in the city's romantic atmosphere. The Eiffel Tower was full of young and old lovers, as well as the usual flock of tourists, even with the day dwindling to a close.

"It certainly beats our last visit to Paris," Carmen remarked once they had parted, alluding to their train journey a few years back when Crackle had first met Carmen Sandiego.

Gray furrowed his brow and Carmen belatedly realised her mistake. Gray's memory was still touch-and-go, most of it he had recovered – the important parts like Black Sheep and V.I.L.E. – but some bits remained lost (Paper Star had thrown a fit when he hadn't recognised her during a fight). She couldn't describe the warmth she felt knowing he remembered almost everything about their time together. But perhaps not this; it had been too close to his mind being wiped (…it was why his mind had been wiped in the first place…)

But then he grinned and her guilt receded. "You can't say sparks didn't fly."

Carmen laughed and wondered how she had fallen in love with someone with such a bad sense of humour. (Who was she fooling, she loved his jokes).

"But I admit, this is much cooler," Gray babbled on, gesturing to the view, oblivious to the way she was staring at him (sparing her from his teasing). "It's a pity we can't go all the way to the top."

To everyone's disappointment, the top viewing platform was closed due to renovations and all access points barred. Of course, that was only a deterrent if you planned on using the conventional route.

"Oh no, I know that look. That's the _I'm going to steal a priceless artefact back from a worldwide criminal organisation and bait the shadow agency hunting me while I'm at it _look."

Carmen didn't try hard to hide her smile. "Well, are you in?"

"Always." Gray lifted her hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles. "What's the plan?"

Dodging both the guards and security cameras, as well as the prying eyes of public, was no small feat, especially in such an enclosed area, but for a couple of master thieves it was a walk in the park. They manoeuvred their way into the tower's inner structure, waiting until they were sure no one would spot them, then Carmen used her grapple gun and hoisted them to the top of the tower. Carmen kept one arm securely locked around Gray as he held on tight. They landed on the metal framing near the top and climbed through to the viewing platform.

Gray whistled as they stepped out, looking around. "Impressive."

"The view's not bad either," Carmen smirked, wrapping her arms around Gray and leaning in. Her team was right, she'd needed this; a real date with her wonderful boyfriend, free from heists, high-speed chases, and most importantly, V.I.L.E.

"La Chevre."

Carmen stilled before her lips met his. "_What?_"

"Look, La Chevre!" Gray pointed behind her and she spun round, immediately spotting their former classmate on the other side of the viewing platform.

"What's he doing here!" Carmen gaped.

La Chevre didn't appear to have noticed them yet and Carmen wasn't about to waste their advantage, sprinting across the platform to confront the thief.

"So much for our vacation," Gray muttered, but she could hear him following.

She skidded to a stop in front of La Chevre ...and El Topo!

"Carmen Sandiego!" They both exclaimed.

"G'day, mates." Gray slid in next to her.

"Crackle!"

"Whatever V.I.L.E. is planning we'll stop you," Carmen warned, shifting into a fighting stance.

"Crickey!" Gray blurted. "El Topo, are you… are you _proposing_?"

Carmen faltered, taking in the scene in front of her. El Topo was down on one knee, an open ring box presented to La Chevre, atop the Eiffel Tower in the most romantic city in the world. _Holy Crackers! _This had nothing to do with V.I.L.E. and everything to do with love!

El Topo blushed. "_Si_… I would be the happiest man in the world… that is… if Jean-Paul will have me…"

"_Bien sûr_! Antonio, _mon cher, _of course I will marry you, _oui oui_!" La Chevre responded, eagerly.

"_Mi amor!" _

El Topo leapt to his feet and La Chevre flung himself upon his partner, kissing him soundly. Carmen glanced away from their passionate embrace, feeling incredibly awkward at having intruded on such a tender moment.

"Congratulation, mates," Gray cheered.

The newly engaged couple pulled apart, smiling at them.

"_Gracias, _Crackle. We would invite you to the wedding but we wouldn't want any conflict with our other guests."

"That and we don't know where to send the save the dates," La Chevre added, with a genuine smile, as if they were old friends instead of enemies. Perhaps, like with Gray, she hadn't burned all her ties when she fled V.I.L.E. Academy.

"I'm very happy for you, guys," Carmen told them, honestly. "Uh… sorry we ruined your moment."

"_Non non, _you did not ruin anything. Nothing could ruin this moment, it is perfect." La Chevre insisted, gazing lovingly at El Topo.

"Uh… unless you are here to arrest us," El Topo eyed them nervously.

"Nah, not at all, we're here strictly for pleasure. It's actually our one year anniversary," Gray informed, wrapping an arm around Carmen's shoulder.

El Topo's smile brightened. "Congratulations."

"We should celebrate!" La Chevre announced. "Let's dine together."

Carmen did her best to hide how she stiffened, even as her brain shifted through every scenario where this was a trap. Gray squeezed her shoulder gently and she glanced up at him, an understanding passing between them.

She looked back at the couple before her – _her opponents, her former friends_ – and smiled. "Dinner would be great."

-x-

Dinner with Jean-Paul and Antonio was hardly the weirdest double-date they had sat through (that went to the time they had gone undercover at a charity gala and ended up on the same table as Countess Cleo and Zack once again posing as the Duke. It had been an uncomfortable evening, for Zack most of all). An unspoken truce had formed between them; neither pair probed for information on what the other side was planning and there were no veiled threats. Just old friends catching up and sharing jokes like they were on the same side… like there were no sides. It was nice. Graham had enjoyed himself and was a little sad when they parted ways, knowing the next time they met they would be enemies once more. Even so, he wished Jean-Paul and Antonio every happiness and hoped V.I.L.E. wouldn't tear them apart like they'd tried to do to him and Carmen. He glanced at the woman beside him, smiling softly. Love had won in the end.

"Today didn't go exactly as planned," Graham admitted as they walked along the Seine, arms linked, Carmen resting her head against his shoulder.

All around them Paris was lit up, a golden glow against the night. Graham had heard it referred to as the City of Light and boy did it shine. He felt a crackle in his fingertips just thinking about the amount of electricity it took to power the whole city.

Carmen's eyes were bright as she turned to him and the city suddenly seemed dimmer in comparison. "Today was lovely, just what I needed. Thank you."

He grinned, feeling flushed from the champagne they had shared and the way she smiled. "Anything for you."

He meant it; he would do anything for this woman. Especially when she looked at him like that. She started to lean in and he did the same; their mouths met and the sparks shot from his fingers through the rest of him, a warm current pulsing through his veins. His heart hammered out a rhythm, mouths moving to the beat, the same thought playing over in his head. He loved this woman, love love loved her; had loved her for a long time and would love her longer still.

They parted, smiling dazedly at each other. Gray opened his mouth to say something, probably to wax poetic about her brilliance and how in love with her he was, when a shout broke them from their trance.

"LA FEMME ROUGE!"

The couple turned with a start to see none other than Detective Chase Devineaux, pointing towards Carmen with a mad blaze in his eyes.

"You have got to be kidding," Graham muttered, unable to believe their luck. The universe certainly had a strange sense of humour.

Carmen looked amused as she grabbed his hand and then they were running. The chase was on. Devineaux shouted as he tried to purse but Graham knew he would never catch them.

"Maybe Paris was a poor choice," he panted as they fled, catching Carmen's eye.

She flashed him a smile. "Where in the world should we go next?"

"So long as I'm with you… anywhere's paradise."

Carmen snorted but didn't let go and together they disappeared into the night.

_Fin._

* * *

**I was desperate for a fic where Red Crackle ran into La Chevre/El Topo on a date and the muse provided. This is meant as a standalone fic but I hope to contribute more to the Carmen Sandiego fandom. **


End file.
